Hail Mary

Like many Episcopal churches, we have a lot of former Roman Catholics at St. Peter's. We are a melting pot of a church, in many ways, and this group makes up a large chunk of the sauce. Not long after I arrived at St. Peter's, one former Roman Catholic approached me to voice a question I bet many others have considered: what does the Episcopal Church believe about Mary?  The assumption being, I suppose, that we believe something different than Roman Catholics do about Jesus' mother.

Well, as this Sunday we

What's in a Name?

Over the past few weeks there's been an intense fervor over our governor's choice not to refer to the decorated tree standing in the State Assembly as a "Christmas Tree."  Some pundits and media watchers have taken to referring to this and similar perceived slights as a "war on Christmas." Apparently some Christian groups are so up in arms over this "war" that they threatened to boycott a certain pharmacy chain for not using the word "Christmas" in their marketing materials, to which that chain

Christmas Card Veneer

Melody and I sat down a few days ago to create the Christmas card we'll send out this year. We use one of those photo printing websites, where you can upload a carefully selected picture with some text printed alongside. In order to make it easier, the website has hundreds of templates to choose from, with all sorts of possible styles and verbage.  Each one had a sample picture of some gorgeous couple or beautiful bunch of smiling kids.  Some were frolicking on the beach, or playing in the snow,

Prayers for Use in Advent

These prayers come from the Rev. Jennifer Phillips, former Rector of St. Augustine's in Kingston, and a noted liturgist and crafter of prayers.  They are best used when lighting the Advent wreath in your home each night, to mark the passing of the month-long season leading us to Christmas. The Church Office has copies of another liturgy, if you'd like additional help praying your way through this holy season.

Week I.Come, O Holy One, as the morning light after a wakeful night! Keep us mindful that

O Come, O Come

The shortening days and lengthening nights are the surest sign that we have arrived at the sacred season of Advent.  The word “advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, which means “coming.”  Despite everything the world (and especially the mall) will try to tell you over the next few weeks, Christmas is not here.  It is coming.  Now, of course God already came into the world a long time ago in the person of Jesus, so in that sense, Christmas already happened.  But in Advent we prepare our lives afresh to

Ready for the Coming

Tomorrow is the start of Advent, the four-week long season of watchful expectation leading us to Christmas. Since the earliest days of the church, Christians prepared themselves for the Festival of the Nativity through intentional self-examination, reflection and prayer. That time of preparation helped them celebrate and experience more deeply the gift of Christ to the world.

Because the truth is that in Advent we are not preparing for Christmas; we are preparing for Christ. In the gospel lesson

Where to Give?

There's nothing like stewardship season to generate great conversations.  Start talking about giving or money and it raises all sorts of questions. Just this past week, I've heard from a couple of parishioners who actually had the same question, and so I want to share it with you in case you are wondering something similar.

"We don't just give to St. Peter's," this person said, "but to a variety of other charities and organizations. Why doesn't that count?"

Well, of course it "counts." If you give money

Secrecy vs Privacy

I hope by now you have received a letter from me in the mail, and I hope you took time to read it. In the next few days, you'll receive another letter from a fellow parishioner, and I hope you'll read that one, too. They'll tell you their story: the story of how God is at work in their lives, and how that relationship inspires them to be generous. I promise they're good stories.

In preparing to write these letters, the writers and Vestry and I had a number of conversations together, and each time a central

Town Hall Meeting

This Sunday you are invited to a Town Hall Meeting in our Parish Hall. We'll discuss the projects that are under consideration for a possible capital campaign next year, and we want everyone to be there. That's because this process centers around a listening and discernment phase, when the entire congregation will voice their desires, hopes, and concerns. Then and only then--after everyone has been heard, every dream floated and every concern aired--will we decide what to do. Your voice will help steer where